


Hidden Depths

by DJRezYourGays



Category: RWBY
Genre: Drowning, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-06
Updated: 2017-11-06
Packaged: 2019-01-30 09:34:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,085
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12650916
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DJRezYourGays/pseuds/DJRezYourGays
Summary: Sun teases Neptune about his fear of water, causing Neptune to recall the terrible incident that led to his phobia, all while playing it cool in front of his friend.MicroWriMo 2017Prompt: Water





	Hidden Depths

Sun's reflection rippled along the surface of the water as he waited for the ship to Menagerie to arrive, quietly worried about the journey and what it might mean, especially if Blake caught wise to him tagging along. The end of his tail flicked back and forth with excess anxiety, the only outward sign that anything might be bothering him. Of course it was a familiar tell for the blue-haired huntsman walking along the dock with his hands in the pockets of his neatly tailored coat.

"Nervous?" Neptune asked, taking a seat alongside his friend, who naturally laughed off the question.

"Me? Nah." Sun shifted uneasily, already sporting a conjured smile. "I'm just ready to get moving again, y'know?"

"Yeah, that sounds like you," Neptune chuckled, resting a hand on his friend's shoulder. "I only wish I could come with you."

"Yeah, but..." Sun glanced toward one of the other ships in the harbor as it blared its horn, looking back at Neptune with a shrug. "You really don't."

"I really don't," Neptune admitted, letting the veneer of confidence drop while there was no one else around. The thought of a boat over deep water all the way to Menagerie was terrifying on a whole new level. "Do you even know what's out there on the way to that island?"

"Nope!" Sun said. "But I know Blake's going, and I don't want her going alone."

"You're not--" Neptune asked, raising his eyebrows to let Sun complete the question.

"What? No!" Sun chuckled. "No, nothing like that. I just...she seems like she could use someone watching her back, y'know? The stuff she's rushing into, it's too big for anyone to handle alone. Not that'll stop her from trying..."

"Sounds like someone else I know," Neptune teased, giving Sun a light punch in the ribs.

"Hey, I invited you along plenty of times," Sun protested.

"That's true. Thanks for not thinking of me this time," he added, meaning it as a joke but unable to keep the tinge of fear out of his voice.

"No problem," Sun said, now watching their collective reflection sway quietly in the water below. "Y'know, you never did tell me why you're so afraid of the water."

"Oh, heh," Neptune shook his head, trying not to remember. "It's embarrassing."

"So?" Sun prodded. "I've told you loads of embarrassing stuff!"

"That's not fair," Neptune shot back, "nothing embarrasses you!"

"Guilty as charged," Sun sighed, leaning back with his hands behind his head to watch the clouds drift by. "It's okay if you don't wanna tell me," he added.

"It's not even that interesting," Neptune admitted, finding himself unable not to relive the moment in his mind. Diving off the coast of Menagerie while on vacation when he was just a little kid, getting to swim around the reef and explore on his own. He'd found a colorful eel that darted away when he got close, dots along its flank lighting up blue in the dark shadow of the reef. He'd followed it through an opening to an underwater cave, watching the blue-green shafts of sunlight dance along the sand in the hidden pocket no one else had probably ever seen. It would've been a fine discovery if it hadn't been for the grimm lurking in the shadows.

Losing track of the eel, Neptune turned to head back to the surface, only to find himself face to face with a creature all darkness and bone and spindly legs looming over the exit tunnel. Its red eyes sat on long stalks and watched him closely as it shifted into a striking position. Neptune panicked, making a dash for the tunnel only to be blocked by a massive, bony claw slamming into the sand only inches in front of his face. He darted back, searching in the low light for another way out of the pocket in the reef. Following the shafts of light, he made his way straight up through a space too narrow for even his small body to squeeze through. With the grimm surely in pursuit, he tried to cram his way through the opening, only to find himself stuck in the bends of the reef.

Terrified, running out of air, he screamed out for help, but there was little hope of anyone hearing. He could feel the grimm already clawing at the roof of the hidden chamber below, trying to dig him out. He squirmed and kicked, trying to break free of the sharp coral pinching his midsection, but only managing to give himself new scrapes and cuts for his efforts. Finally, perhaps spurned on by the fresh scent of blood in the water, the grimm burst through the reef after him, sending Neptune reeling. He swam with all his might to outrun the grimm, desperate for air but instead diving deeper into the reef to slip his pursuer.

He finally managed to lose the grimm in a dark nook tucked into a shelf of the reef, letting it rush past and waiting to make sure it was truly gone before risking coming out. Unfortunately the prolonged escape attempt had left him with two little air, and cradled by the reef, little Neptune felt the world go dark and quiet all around him.

He'd woken up on the beach, revived by his parents. The burning in his chest from ejecting all the seawater had stuck firmly in his memory to this day, as had the red eyes of the grimm still lurking somewhere out below the waves. Ever since, every body of water he went into reminded him of that day on the beach. Not that he had ever told anyone that. It was easier to let them believe it was just another quirk.

The blare of another ship's horn drew him at once out of his daydreaming, and he looked up to see the steamer to Menagerie rolling in. "Looks like your ship's finally come in," he teased.

Sun sat up, quickly glancing around the dock for any sign of Blake to make sure she didn't catch him here waiting to board. "All right," he said. "Wish me luck!"

"Just be safe," Neptune answered, staring down at his reflection in the water. "You never know what's lurking out there."

But Sun was already bounding off, looking for a way to slip aboard unnoticed. Neptune sighed and got to his feet, dusting himself off and heading back into town to work out his own transportation home. Anything other than a boat.


End file.
